Shigure Kuroda
Shigure Kuroda (黒田紫呉, Kuroda Shigure) is the 4th Seat of the 7th Division under Tsubasa Muromachi. Appearance Shigure has the appearance of a young adult male with shoulder-length black hair, brown eyes and a light mixed skin color. His hair is tied in a low ponytail with four split ruffles, and his eyes are noted to have an almost slit-like quality to them. In terms of clothing, he wears a sleeveless shihakushō, a hakama with closed cuffs and boots instead of the standard sandals. A band with the 7th Division emblem is wrapped around the bicep of his right arm, and he sports fingerless gloves on his hands. His Zanpakutō is secured against his right hip. Personality Shigure is a quiet, subdued and passive young man. Commonly, he speaks with others in short and clipped sentences to ensure that his point is taken across. Most of the time, he remains silent and almost invisible to other people even when he's in a group. This doesn't mean that he's anti-social; when someone mentions a topic that he's particularly interested in, he will speak with a little more vocal power than normal. It isn't uncommon for him to be able to talk normally, albeit he prefers to be silent over talkative. In the times that he opens himself up, he demonstrates himself to be a kind, polite and mild-mannered individual. He holds a great deal of loyalty and respect towards his superiors and will obediently follow orders without question, especially when they are given from the likes of his Captain. When in the field of battle, he will exhibit a calm and almost detached personality. In the heat of combat, he will stay silent and focus on attack and defense rather than conversing with his foe. However, in a lull of combat, he will sometimes speak with his foe if they address him (albeit hesitantly). He exhibits no pleasure or satisfaction when he delivers a blow to his enemy or kills them, and will even show regret towards the more sympathetic foe. But he can become quite agitated when he suffers a wound too quickly. If he becomes overwhelmed - especially if it is done in a quick manner - his composure will break and he will be more prone to fury and fear. Despite his social attitude, Shigure is considerably nihilistic. He believes that overall life is fueled by sociopathic behavior, which is encouraged in order to make a living. Despite his respect and loyalty, there can be instances where cowardice can overrule his courage. When the lives of his comrades as well as his own are in danger, he will instinctively flee and try to preserve his own life rather than make any effort to help his allies. When the situation is particularly stressful, he will lose his mind to all the chaos and be unable to think properly. He will regret and feel shameful his actions afterwards, particularly when he is called out on them. He is heavily self-conscious, unable to handle criticism too easily and can twist a simple note into a rather nasty insult in his head. History Shigure started his life out in Rukongai District 60, the midpoint of the lawless zones. He was found by his "father" - an old soldier in the Material World who had been killed in action - and out of sympathy from the soldier, he was taken in and raised. In the lawless district, he would be educated as best as possible while also being taught the skills of thievery, self-defense and even killing. In his younger years, his weapon of choice was a knife. By the age of ten, Shigure had become an adequate murderer and killed his fair share of people. Notably, this was an age in where he enjoyed killing in contrast to the detached attitude he would take later on while in battle. As a young teen, Shigure bore witness to a revolt that took place when the Sakamoto Clan moved in to take control of the more lawless districts where the presence of the Gotei 13 was void. At this time, Captain Tsubasa Muromachi and the 7th Division was secretly supporting the side of the Sakamoto, helping them to secure a ruling position. In the violence that ensued, his father was killed by Lieutenant Tetsuyo Miyagi, who then found Shigure cowering in the background. Although Tetsuyo attempted to reason with Shigure, the boy grew enraged and attempted to attack the Lieutenant. He was subdued quite easily, however, and brought to Tsubasa for questioning on what to do with him. Feeling ashamed for the act of having a child witness his own father's death, Tsubasa took Shigure in and gave him a shelter in the Seireitei. In return, he was to train in the Shinō Academy to become a member of the Gotei 13. Tetsuyo became one of Shigure's more prominent mentors during the young boy's trek through the ranks as a student. Under the Lieutenant's tutelage, Shigure learned the skills of a Shinigami, becoming more potent in the use of Zanjutsu and Hohō than anything else. Constant interaction soothed the grief and sorrow Shigure had been carrying due to his father's death, and he developed a rather close bond with the Lieutenant as a result. After four years in the Academy, Shigure passed his entrance exam and became admitted into the 7th Division under Tsubasa's command. He was personally welcomed by Tsubasa, courtesy of his Lieutenant's close interactions with him. Synopsis *''Has not appeared in any stories as of yet. This section will be updated as development progresses.'' Powers & Abilities Expert Swordsman: While by no means a veteran in terms of swordplay, Shigure has considerable skill with a blade. His fighting style is orthodox, focusing on aggression and offense in order to dominate an opponent in battle. To catch the enemy off-guard, he will mix in grapples and holds in order to throw his enemy down and open their defenses for an easier killing blow. Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Shigure possesses enough competence in barehanded fighting to defend himself effectively in a scuffle. Despite what he displays with a sword, Shigure prefers striking his opponent with direct blows in favor of grapples and takedowns. A common trait he has while using his bare fists is striking the weakest points of an enemy's stance - more specifically, the knees and elbows of his foe. High Intellect: Although admittedly not the smartest out of the Seated Officers of the 7th Division, Shigure has a knack for good tact and thought. His mental ability concentrates in "puzzle-solving", where he is presented problems and has to piece together given clues in order to make a proper solution. Hohō Practitioner: Shigure possesses a notable amount of skill in the use of Flash Step, able to cross moderate gaps of distance within seconds where walking would take much longer. However, he can only use Hohō to move so far, and he cannot maintain such travel for prolonged periods without exhausting himself. High Spiritual Energy: As a high-ranking seated officer, Shigure carries a notable amount of spiritual energy. Zanpakutō Shiro Kinzoku (白金属, White Metal): The name of Shigure's Zanpakutō. Its sealed state takes the form of a katana with a straight-edge katana with a purple handle and a golden guard. There is an extendable chain tassel at the pommel, which can be grabbed and slung to treat the sword like a long-range flail. *'Shikai:' The release command for Shiro Kinzoku is "Engage" (合戦, kassen). Upon stating the release, the blade appears to shed pieces of ash on the ground. The new weapon is revealed underneath, like a snake shedding its skin. The tassel shifts from chain to blue fabric, the handle turns black and the blade gains the color of white with a blue edge. :Shikai Special Ability: Shiro Kinzoku's power stems around the use of colors - or more specifically, the psychology associated with those colors. Once Shiro Kinzoku is released, Shigure and his opponent are forced to abide by its rules. He himself refers to it as a rather unforgiving Zanpakutō. According to its rules, red equals enhanced offense, blue equals mental clarity, yellow equals a lessened desire to kill, green equals power balance between the combatants involved, violet equals damage dealt directly to the inner soul, orange heals through physical contact, pink equals weakened constitution, grey equals the inability to form thoughts properly, black equals a state of temporary "death", white equals healing and brown equals enhanced defense. *'Shikisai' (色彩, Color): An ability mostly used in close-quarters combat. Shigure calls out a color visually associated with the physical appearance of his opponent, and a time period of thirty seconds is initiated. During this period, the color called out will have a special effect on both the opponent and Shigure. For example, if the color "red" is called out by Shigure, damage inflicted by either Shigure or the opponent will be multiplied depending on how much red is associated with the opponent. The reverse is true, as well. *'Tezawari' (接触, Touch): Whenever Shigure touches an object of a certain color, he gains the effects of that color. For example, standing on a dirt-covered ground will enhance his physical defenses. However, he has to keep himself within physical contact of the object of interest in order to keep those effects in tact. *'Bankai:' Not yet achieved. Behind the Scenes *In role-play time, Shikisai's thirty-second time limit is marked by five posts following the post where a color is called. References Category:Male Category:7th Division (Mangetsu20) Category:Seated Officer